Since it is natural for children to play, it is not always something a parent observes or monitors during playtimes, but knowing your child's developmental play stage is very informative. It lets you know why your child may have difficulties sharing with others or is unable to make friends and overall how your child interacts with others socially and why.
Children go through these developmental stages with play:
- Unoccupied (play) – when the child is not playing, just observing. A child may be standing in one spot or performing random movements.
- Solitary (independent) play – when the child is alone and maintains this status by being focused on its activity. Such a child is uninterested in or is unaware of what others are doing. More common in younger children (age 2–3) as opposed to older ones.
- Onlooker play (behavior) – when the child watches others at play but does not engage in it. The child may engage in forms of social interaction, such as conversation about the play, without actually joining in the activity.
- Parallel (adjacent play, social coaction) – when the child plays separately from others but close to them and mimicking their actions. This type of play is seen as a transitory stage from a socially immature solitary and onlooker type of play, to a more socially mature associative and cooperative type of play.
- Associative play – when the child is interested in the people playing but not in the activity they are doing, or when there is no organized activity at all. There is a substantial amount of interaction involved, but the activities are not coordinated.
- Cooperative play – when a child is interested both in the people playing and in the activity they are doing. In cooperative play, the activity is organized, and participants have assigned roles. There is also increased self-identification with a group, and a group identity may emerge. Relatively uncommon in the preschool years because it requires the most social maturity and more advanced organization skills. An example would be a game of freeze tag.
From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parten's_stages_of_play
Yet just like all other developmental milestones, the timing of when your child enters each stage is dependent on when her body (emotionally, physically, mentally and socially) is ready to move from one stage to another.
Although she can learn how to interact socially from adults, siblings, and peers, there are some components of play that are nature and not nurture.
At Huakailani, we have created an environment when the students are given opportunities to play. Playing is where children learn how to socialize and to problem solve.
Here is an article I recently came across that shares about the importance of play -
http://www.independent.co.uk/
The views of websites in which articles are linked from on this posting do not necessarily represent the views of this author.
In today's busy, high tech world, there is nothing more refreshing than to watch Huakailani Girls during Creative Play.
